It's a Wonderful Raph!
by nodusquix
Summary: On Christmas Eve, Raph's wish that he'd never been born comes true! Takes place after 'Forbidden Love'. FINISHED!!!
1. The Past

[A/N: This story is a crossover between TMNT and the movie "It's a Wonderful Life". I don't own anything TMNT or the idea for Frank Capra's classic story. The only things I own are Kurai, Jaaku, and Cyrus. Hope you enjoy this fanfic! ^.^ ]  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Part I - The Past  
  
It was a snowy Christmas Eve in the conurbation known as Manhattan. Everything was finally at peace, save for a few voices praying silently to anyone that would listen.  
  
"Please God, watch over Raph tonight."  
  
"God, help my son, Raphael, in his time of need."  
  
"Whoever is listening, please help Raphael out tonight, I love him."  
  
Similar prayers continued traveling through space and time until they reached the heavens above. There, two figures dressed in white could be seen looking down on Earth. The first, more important-looking one turned to his associate and smiled. "Hello, Joseph. Trouble?" He asked.  
  
Joseph nodded his head somberly and spoke. "Looks like we'll have to send someone down. A lot of people asking for help for a guy named Raphael."  
  
"Raphael?" The first looked down for a moment thoughtfully, and then gazed back at Joseph. "Yes, tonight's his crucial night. You're right. We'll have to send someone down immediately. Whose turn is it?"  
  
"That's why I came to see you, sir," Joseph told him. He took a step closer to his friend before saying, "It's that shoemaker's turn again."  
  
Sir let out a gentle laugh. "Oh Cyrus. Hasn't got his wings yet, has he?"  
  
"We've passed him right along because you know, sir, he's got the IQ of a rabbit..." Joseph started to say.  
  
"But has the faith of a child," Sir continued. "Simple. Joseph, send for Cyrus."  
  
Joseph nodded as he reached inside of his pocket. He pulled out a small, silver bell and let it ring once. Almost immediately, another man came running up to the first two. He was dressed in a white suit and wore a white bowler's hat over his neatly brushed blonde hair. To complete his look, he wore a pair of glasses that seemed to make his blue eyes brighter. A flustered look was upon his face as he approached Joseph. "You sent for me, sir?"  
  
Sir nodded. "Yes, Cyrus. A man down on Earth needs our help."  
  
"Splendid. Is he sick?" Cyrus wondered.  
  
The grin from Sir's face faded as he shook his head. "No, worse. He's discouraged. At exactly 10:45 PM Earth time, that man will be thinking seriously about throwing away God's greatest gift."  
  
Cyrus gasped and appeared concerned. "Oh dear, dear, his life! Then I've only an hour to dress. What are they wearing these days?"  
  
"You will be spending that hour getting acquainted with Raphael."  
  
A charming smile fell over Cyrus' face. "If I should accomplish this mission...I mean, uh, might I be earning my wings? I've been waiting for over 200 years now, sir, and people are beginning to talk."  
  
Another mellow laugh came from Sir. "Cyrus, you do a good job and you'll earn your wings."  
  
Cyrus jumped up excitedly and gave Joseph a huge hug. "Oh thank you, sir. Thank you!" Realizing how uncomfortable Joseph was with the embrace, Cyrus let go and calmed himself down.  
  
Joseph shook his head. "Poor Raphael," he mumbled to himself. He turned his attention back to the young angel. "Sit down."  
  
"Sit down?" Cyrus asked. "But I've got to..."  
  
"If you're going to help someone, you'll want to know something about him, don't you?"  
  
"Well, naturally, of course I..." Cyrus started to say.  
  
Joseph held his hand up and Cyrus ceased to talk. "Now keep your eyes open," he told the youngster. A large screen appeared in front of them and flickered to life. On the screen was an overhead view of Manhattan. The picture began to zoom in until it showed four young turtles frolicking about the sewer tunnels. The one in front, who was clad in red, yelled for his brothers to hurry up.  
  
"Who's that?" Cyrus asked curiously.  
  
"That's our problem. Raphael," Joseph answered.  
  
"That little guy?"  
  
"This is his past, Cyrus. Now please just watch and listen."  
  
They turned attention back to the four turtle boys and watched as they played a game in the sewers. A young Raphael, Leonardo, and Donatello crossed the middle of the sewer, stepping through an inch of dirty, freezing water. Their brother, Michelangelo, looked timidly at the crossing which was a good two meters lower than the platforms they were standing on. His brothers cheered him on as Raph shouted, "Come on, Mikey! Don't be a scaredy cat!"  
  
"I'm not afraid!" Mikey protested. Hooking onto his brother's bait, Mikey jumped down into the crossing and began walking across it. Suddenly, the turtles heard a loud rumbling and their attention turned from Mikey to the source of the sound. A huge wave of water came crashing through the sewers, heading straight for Mikey.  
  
"Mikey, get out of there!" His brothers yelled simultaneously. Mikey frantically tried to escape the monstrous wave, but it was too late and the poor turtle was swept away.  
  
"Mikey!" Raph screamed. Without thinking, he jumped in after his brother. He swam to catch up with the drowning Mikey. He grabbed his brother and began to swim towards the edge of the crossing. Three digits finally caught a semi-loose brick and grabbed on for dear life. He pushed his brother onto the platform before loosing his grip momentarily. A few meters away he found his grip again and managed to pull himself from the freezing water.  
  
"Wow! What a lifesaver!" Cyrus exclaimed as the scene faded to black.  
  
"Yes. Cost him his hearing in his right ear," Joseph responded seriously. A silver remote control appeared in his hand and he changed the channel to show a different scene. The screen showed how the turtles had saved the city from the notorious Shredder a numbered amount of times.  
  
"Those turtle's sure are something," an excited Cyrus commented.  
  
"That they are." Joseph changed the channel once more to show Cyrus the story of how Kurai the kitten was turned good by Raphael's kindness and how they fell in love. After the scene was over with, Joseph changed the channel one last time, showing Cyrus more current affairs.  
  
The scene now showed the inside of the turtle's sewer den and Kurai talking to Leo about something. She held a small crystal in her hand and showed it to him. Joseph zoomed in on them so that he and Cyrus could hear what they were talking about.  
  
"...and don't let this out of your sight. If it fell into the wrong hands, well, I'd rather not say," she told him as she started to hand it over to him. Raph, who had decided to pop in between the two, intercepted the jewel.  
  
Leo tried to snatch the crystal back from him, but Raph pulled it out of his reach . "Give it back!" Leo pleaded.  
  
Raph laughed and asked what the object was. Kurai managed to take the crystal back from her boyfriend and shook her head slowly. "Raph, this isn't something to be played with. It's a Yana Crystal from Dimension X and it hold a massive amount of power within it."  
  
"Oh," Raph responded. He tilted his head, looked at Leo, then back at Kurai. "So why were you going to give it to, Leo?"  
  
"Leo was going to take it to someone who can harness the crystal's energy, then destroy. This thing is too dangerous to be active," she explained.  
  
"So, uh, why don't I just take it for you?" He asked, giving her a big hug.  
  
Kurai glanced over to Leo, who nodded his head in agreement. She turned her attention back to Raph and handed to crystal over to him. "Take it over to Brooklyn. Once you get there, find a man named Jonathan Dep. Give the crystal to him and leave immediately. Is that clear, Raphie?"  
  
Raph nodded and gave Kurai a quick kiss on the cheek. "Transparent," he answered. With that, he left the den and headed for the streets.  
  
He exited the underground from a manhole and jumped onto the dark pavement. He looked around, seeing no apparent threats. His pose relaxed slightly as he headed for Brooklyn. After a while, he began hearing footsteps creeping along behind him. A grin spread across his face as he inconspicuously reached for a sai. He could hear the footsteps get closer and decided to make his move. He spun around quickly and slashed his weapon through the air.  
  
A bemused expression came about him as he saw no one behind him. Thinking that his mind had been playing tricks on him, he shrugged and turned to continue his journey. A metallic fist swept across his face hard, causing him to lose his balance and fall to ground. He landed on his side harshly and the wind was temporarily knocked out of him. He looked up to see who his attacker was and frowned as he gazed upon a Foot Soldier with brass knuckles.  
  
The Foot Soldier expressed amusement as he waved over a few more of his kind. A dozen ninjas surrounded the fallen turtle, the one with brass knuckles standing in front of the rest. He held out his hand. "Give us the crystal, turtle," he demanded.  
  
Raphael sat up slowly and glared at the individual. "What crystal would you be talkin' about?"  
  
The leader knelt down and slapped Raph with his metal hand. "We have no business with you, turtle. Give us the crystal and you'll walk away unscathed," he bargained.  
  
"No," Raph answered simply. He then spit on the Foot Soldier and laughed.  
  
The Foot Soldier wiped the spit from his brow and stood up. He took a step back from the group and snapped his fingers. The rest of the ninjas then began to pummel, kick, and beat the crap out of Raph until he lay on the ground a bloody pulp.  
  
The crystal rolled from the spot he had been keeping it and the Foot Soldier smiled. He picked it up from the ground and whispered into Raph's left ear, "Thanks, turtle." He got back to his feet and followed through with a kick to the back of Raph's head. He threw down a small smoke bomb and the area was immediately filled with a dark mist.  
  
Raph struggled to get to his feet to chase the ninjas down, but couldn't see them through the smoke. Once it had cleared, he gazed around the environ, trying to catch a glimpse of the Foot Soldiers. A angry scream came from Raph as he started a long walk back to the den. 


	2. The Wish

[A/N: This story is a crossover between TMNT and the movie "It's a Wonderful Life". I don't own anything TMNT or the idea for Frank Capra's classic story. The only things I own are Kurai, Jaaku, and Cyrus. Hope you enjoy this fanfic! ^.^ ]  
  
  
  
  
  
Part II - The Wish  
  
Raphael walked into the sewer den slowly, his face cast downward to the floor. He gazed up and saw his brothers, Kurai, and Splinter decorating the Christmas tree they had just bought. He let out a sigh and entered the room.  
  
Kurai, who was the first to see him, smiled brightly at him. "Hey Raphie. Didn't expect you to be back so soon," she told him. "Your brothers and Splinter are teaching me about Christmas! Come and help us decorate the tree."  
  
"I'm alright," he answered, walking over to the couch and sitting down.  
  
Kurai frowned at his behavior and sat down beside him. She put her arm around his shoulder and asked, "What's wrong?"  
  
He shrugged her arm off of him and shook his head, avoiding looking at her. "Nothing, nothing at all," he lied.  
  
"Raphie. I can clearly see that something is wrong. Please, just tell me what it is," she begged.  
  
Raphael buried his head into his hands before looking up to stare into her amber eyes. "I...the crystal...Some Foot Soldiers stole it."  
  
Kurai's face went white and her eyes went wide. "That's not funny, Raphael."  
  
"I'm not joking, Kurai. I'm sorry," he apologized as he held his down once more.  
  
A shaky hand swept through Kurai's green and purple hair as Kurai turned her attention away from Raph. She stood up rather quickly and headed for her room. Raph rose to his feet to follow, but saw that Splinter had already followed her. Instead, he kicked the couch angrily and stormed out of the den. When he reached the streets again, he headed towards the Brooklyn Bridge, a million thoughts racing through his head. "Kurai's so mad at me...I lost the crystal and now everything's falling apart," he mumbled under his breath.  
  
As he reached the bridge, snow began to fall from the sky again. He had only managed to grab his tan trench coat before he walked out of the den and he quickly found out that that wouldn't be enough to keep him warm. He walked to the middle of the bridge and peered down at the icy cold water.  
  
"Things would be a lot better if I hadn't been born", he muttered to himself. He attention turned momentarily from the waters beneath him to look at another entity walking onto the bridge. Raph turned back to the ocean below, figuring it to be his only way out of this mess. Before he could jump in however, he saw the man climb onto the ledge and jump off.  
  
As the man hit the water he began yelling for someone to help. Without a thought, Raph jumped over the railing and off the bridge to save the man. He hit the freezing water hard and immediately began swimming towards the drowning man.  
  
"Grab on!" Raph shouted as he swam closer to the man. Following the order, the man grabbed onto the turtle and they began to swim to the rocky shore. Raph gripped onto a rock and pulled the both of them onto the shore. He continued climbing until they reached the bridge again. Exhausted, Raph let go of the man and collapsed onto the ground.  
  
The man, trying to return the favor, saw a building nearby and started to drag the turtle towards it. He was able to pull Raph inside the small and apparently abandoned building and rested him on a padded chair. He walked away momentarily to turn on the furnace and made his way back to Raphael, kneeling before him. "Thanks for saving my life."  
  
"No problem," Raph replied as he took his trench coat off. He looked strangely over at the kneeling man. "Why'd you jump off the bridge anyways?"  
  
"Well I had to stop you from jumping in it, Raphael."  
  
"That's a pretty stupid id-wait! How'd you know I was thinking of jumping in? And how do you know my name?! And why aren't you freaked out about me being a talking turtle?!?!"  
  
"Oh, pardon me. I forgot to introduce myself!" The man stood up and tipped his bowler's hat towards Raph. "My name's Cyrus and I'm your guardian angel."  
  
Raph's eyes widened before he started laughing hysterically. "You're my guardian angel?" He questioned as he continued to laugh. "If you're an angel, where are your wings?"  
  
Cyrus looked sheepishly to the ground. "Well, you see, I haven't earned my wings yet."  
  
"Great. My guardian angel isn't even a real angel," Raph retorted as he crossed his arms over his chest.  
  
"Look. I'm supposed to help you out and-," Cyrus started to explain.  
  
"If you're my guardian angel and are supposed to help me out, why don't you make it so I'd never been born!" Raph yelled.  
  
"Oh goodness, no! That's a terrible thing to say why..." Cyrus looked up and tilted his head. "You think so, Joseph? Alright." He turned his attention back to the upset turtle, a smile spreading wide across his face. "Alright. You've never been born." 


	3. A World Without Raph

[A/N: This story is a crossover between TMNT and the movie "It's a Wonderful Life". I don't own anything TMNT or the idea for Frank Capra's classic story. The only things I own are Kurai, Jaaku, and Cyrus. Hope you enjoy this fanfic! ^.^ ]  
  
  
  
  
  
Part III - A World Without Raph  
  
"You've never been born."  
  
Raph almost fell out of his chair as the words escaped Cyrus' mouth. He cocked his head and gave the man a quizzical look. "I've never been born?"  
  
"That's right. You don't exist," the angel repeated.  
  
Raph solemnly looked at the ground, clasping his hands together. After sitting in silence for a minute, the turtle started chuckling softly. Cyrus arched his brow slightly, wondering what Raph was laughing about. Raph looked back up at the angel, a slight smile on his face. "I get it," he told Cyrus.  
  
"What exactly do you get?" Asked Cyrus, hoping that the turtle had already learned his lesson.  
  
"You've had one too many drinks, haven't you?"  
  
"Huh?" A confused angel queried.  
  
Raphael stood up and stretched his body out. "Well angel boy, I think I've had too much fun tonight." He grabbed his coat and headed for the door. "See you around." He had almost reached the door when he stopped dead in his tracks. He looked slowly to the coat in his grip before turning his attention back to Cyrus. "That's funny," he mused. "My coat's dry."  
  
"Well of course it is! You never had to jump off the bridge to save me because you don't exist," Cyrus further clarified.  
  
Raph shook his head. "That can't be it. That's impossible," he told Cyrus. He turned away from the angel again and continued for the door.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"To get a drink. You can tag along if you want," Raph put forward. Taking up on the offer, Cyrus trotted across the room to catch up with the fleeting turtle. They hadn't walked far before coming across an apartment complex. Raph looked at the building, which now appeared to be abandoned and run-down. "I guess Casey hasn't cleaned this place up in a while," he decided.  
  
"I wouldn't be too sure of that," Cyrus stated.  
  
Raph gazed over to his follower. "What do you mean by that?"  
  
"Well. Without you and your brothers around to help him out, Casey never became the manager of this apartment building."  
  
"That's a lie!" Raph fumed. He ran inside the dilapidated building, not wanting to hear another word out of the angel's mouth. Cyrus rolled his eyes, realizing that it would take a while to convince Raph that he didn't exist.  
  
Raph continued running around the building, shouting his friend's name and looking for him. When he came across an open door, he peeked his head inside for a look. What he saw was a figure sitting in the far corner of the room, a ratty blanket covering its body. He walked into the room and took a few cautious steps towards the shrouded figure. "Casey? Is that you?" He asked in a quiet whisper.  
  
"Who's there?!" The figure immediately jumped to his feet, revealing himself to indeed be Casey Jones. He reached for a nearby baseball bat and gripped it fiercely. "Who are you?! What do you want?!" He asked Raph, partially freaked of the mutant.  
  
"Casey, chill. It's me, Raph," he said in a calming voice.  
  
The obviously deranged human glared irately at the mutant. "I don't know any filthy mutants," he told Raph, spitting into his eye immediately afterwards. He gripped his bat even harder, getting ready to take a swing at Raph.  
  
"Filthy?!" Raph was surprised by Casey's comment. What had happened to his friend? And who was this hate-filled man that had replaced him? Raph took a few steps backwards, making sure to stay out of range of the bat.  
  
"Get out! OUT!" Casey screamed and took a wild swing at the turtle. Raph jumped back instinctively. Casey continued swinging his bat aimlessly at Raph until he drove him from the apartment complex. As the turtle walked back to the street, Casey shouted from his porch, "And don't you ever come back!"  
  
Cyrus joined back up with Raph as they continued down the street. Raphael looked over to Cyrus, seeming sadder then he had been earlier. "What was up with Casey?" He wondered aloud.  
  
"He never knew you. You don't exist."  
  
"Will you stop saying that? It's impossible for me not to exist!"  
  
Cyrus shook his head at his turtle friend. "When will you realize what has happened, Raphael? You don't exist! You wished it, so I made it happen! I wanted to show you how important you actually are to this world."  
  
"Whatever," Raph replied. Then he turned back to Cyrus. "I know someone who will remember me!" He darted off, heading back for his sewer den.  
  
"Wait up!" Cyrus cried, running after Raphael.  
  
The turtle ran until he reached the door of his sewer den. He opened the door and his jaw dropped to the ground at what he saw. Like Casey's apartment building, the den was in horrible shape and it appeared that no one had lived there in half a decade. Raph stepped into the den slowly, scared at what he was seeing. An out-of-breath Cyrus walked in behind him, remaining quiet as he could be.  
  
After standing in shock for a few minutes, Raph rotated to face Cyrus. A somber look fell over his as he asked his friend, "What happened here?"  
  
Cyrus also had a sad appearance about him. "About five years ago, a group of Foot Soldiers found this place and were able to capture your brothers and Splinter. Shredder took Leonardo and Donatello captive, but killed off splinter immediately."  
  
"What about Mikey?"  
  
"Michelangelo died when he fell into the sewer waters so many years ago. Since you never existed, there was no one to save him. And when the Foot Soldiers invaded the den five years ago, there were only a young Leonardo and Donatello to defend the place."  
  
Raphael fell to his knees, not able to bear it anymore. He buried his head into his hands and broke down. A sympathetic Cyrus kneeled down beside his friend and put his arm around Raph's shoulder. Suddenly, Raph grabbed Cyrus' shoulders. "Where's Kurai?" He asked.  
  
"I can't tell you," the angel answered and looked away from Raph quickly.  
  
Raph started shaking Cyrus violently. "Tell me! Where is she?!" He yelled in a threatening tone of voice.  
  
"Alright! I'll tell you!" He acquiesced. Raph let go and waited for him to answer. "Since you never turned her away from the dark side, she's still in affiliation with the Foot Clan."  
  
"...No," Raph murmured to himself. "That can't be..." He stood up and took off running once more. This time, he was headed towards the headquarters of the Foot Clan. He continued running until he reached the large warehouse where he had first meet Kurai. He noticed that a large amount of ninjas were walking freely about the vicinity, not worried if anyone saw them, like they usually would be.  
  
Not caring if they saw him, Raph started running again, making his way to the entrance of the warehouse. He managed to get inside without being seen, but nearly screamed at what he saw.  
  
There, standing on a dais, were Kurai and Jaaku, both wrapped around in the other's arms. 


	4. Realization

[A/N: This story is a crossover between TMNT and the movie "It's a Wonderful Life". I don't own anything TMNT or the idea for Frank Capra's classic story. The only things I own are Kurai, Jaaku, and Cyrus. Hope you enjoy this fanfic! ^.^ ]  
  
  
  
  
  
Part IV - Realization  
  
Raph started to jump up to attack the vile Jaaku but was pulled back down by a pair of strong hands. He turned to glare angrily at whoever it was that had touched him. "Cyrus?!" He exclaimed, thinking that he had left the angel behind a while ago.  
  
"Raph, you're greatly outnumbered here. Jumping out there will only get you killed," Cyrus told him calmly.  
  
"But he has his filthy paws on my girlfriend," Raph complained.  
  
"That's his girlfriend now. You weren't there to save her from evil. When Shredder introduced the two, they almost immediately fell in love," Cyrus explained.  
  
Raphael turned away from Cyrus, angry once again. After a thought, he looked back to the angel with a sparkle of hope in his eyes. "You said that they had captured my brothers. Are they still alive?" He asked.  
  
"Barely," Cyrus responded.  
  
"What do you-," He started to question, but Cyrus was already pointing something out to the turtle. He looked to what Cyrus was pointing at and almost screamed at what he saw.  
  
A few low-ranking Foot Soldiers had brought out two chained turtles before Jaaku and Kurai. The conditions of both turtles were beyond horrendous. The first turtles, which appeared to be Leo, had scars and bruises all over his body. What looked like burns were placed heavily across his chest. The second turtle, Donnie, was in the same state as his brother, except that he had a long scar running over his left eye and down his cheek.  
  
Kurai stepped down from the dais and over to Leo with a wicked grin on her face. On her right index finger was an elongated, sickle-shaped claw. She held the claw up to Leo's cheek and ran it down his face smoothly. "Tell me, Leonardo," she began in a sweet voice. "Do you enjoy pain?"  
  
Leo turned his head away from her and continued to be silent. Kurai growled at his silence and slashed the claw across his face.  
  
"Why must you remain silent, turtle? It's only causing you more pain." After her little spiel she delivered a fierce uppercut to the speechless turtle, followed by a harsh elbow his back, causing him to fall face first. Kurai straddled Leonardo and placed her hands on each side of his face. "Now, Leonardo, I will give you one last chance to tell me what you've done with the crystal."  
  
"Wait. Doesn't she have the crystal?" Raph whispered to Cyrus.  
  
"Before your brothers became weak, they managed to break free from their cells. Prior to their being recaptured, they were able to steal the crystal from Kurai and hide it," Cyrus elucidated.  
  
Raph nodded and turned his attention back to Kurai and his brothers.  
  
Leo turned his head slightly and looked up at the cat-girl. "I'll never tell you where the crystal is, Kurai. Its location will die with me."  
  
"Very well," Kurai sighed before snapping Leo's neck. The turtle's body went limp as life ceased to dwell within it.  
  
"Nooooo!"  
  
Everyone's attention turned towards Raphael, who had jolted up to reveal his position. Kurai narrowed her eyes at the new turtle and let out another growl.  
  
Jaaku pointed a clawed digit at Raph and yelled, "Get him!"  
  
Quick to follow orders, the army of Foot Soldiers started to run towards Raph and Cyrus. The lone turtle quickly turned around and began to run, with Cyrus trailing slightly behind him. The angel, who obviously wasn't very athletic, was captured by the Foot Soldiers.  
  
"Joseph! Help me, Joseph!" Cyrus cried as he struggled to get free from the Foot Soldiers. Almost immediately, the angel disappeared from the view of the ninjas.  
  
"Uh, where'd he go?"  
  
"Nevermind him, get the turtle!"  
  
The chase after Raph resumed, the ninjas almost at his feet. Raph sprinted, heading for the Brooklyn Bridge. He looked behind him to see how far away the ninjas were from him. They were starting to lag as they weren't in shape as Raph was. Taking this to his advantage, Raph zigzagged the rest of his journey to the bridge in hopes of losing the Foot Soldiers.  
  
He slowed his run suddenly as his destination was met. He leaned against the railing and clasped his hands in front of him. "I want to live again," he murmured to himself. "Please God, I want to live again." His prayer was interrupted momentarily as he turned his head to the sound of a thousand Foot Soldiers heading his way. He turned back around. "Please, I've learned my lesson. I want to live again."  
  
Behind him, he could hear the sound of a pair of feet coming up behind him. "Raph? Raph is that you?" Someone called as the footsteps got closer. He turned around to see Casey approaching him.  
  
He pulled his sai from under his belt and pointed it at the human. "Now you just stay away, I ain't afraid to use this against you, Casey," warned Raph.  
  
"Raph, what's wrong with you?" Casey asked.  
  
"Stay back, I...Wait. Did you call me Raph?" He wondered hopefully.  
  
"Well that is your name, dimwit," Casey replied with a sardonic tone of voice.  
  
Raph jumped on Casey and gave him a bear hug. "Merry Christmas, Casey!" He said as he pulled back from him. "Say," he began to think. "What are you doing out here anyways?"  
  
"Your brothers called, told me that you had run off, and asked if I could go out to look for you," he told him. Casey put his arm around Raph. "Come on, let's go home," he suggested as the two began to walk back to the sewer den.  
  
- ¤ - ¤-  
  
Leo, Donnie, Mikey, and Splinter waited patiently on the couch for Casey to make his return.  
  
"Where could he be?" Leo asked aloud.  
  
As soon as the words escaped his mouth, the door opened and in walked Casey and Raph. Raph ran over to his brothers and master and embraced them. He suddenly noticed that there was someone missing. He pulled back from the hug and asked, "Where's Kurai?"  
  
"After we called Casey, she went out to look for you," Donnie answered.  
  
"She should be back soon, though," Leo added.  
  
Right on cue, the door opened once again and Kurai entered the room. Her somber face immediately lit up as she saw Raph in the room. She ran towards him and jumped into his arms for a tender embrace. The two kissed and simply enjoyed the moment together.  
  
Kurai pulled back from the kiss. "Raph, I was so worried about you," she told him as she rested her head on his shoulder.  
  
He continued to hold her affectionately, never wanting to let go. "I'm so sorry about the crystal, Kurai," he apologized again.  
  
She shook her head gently. "Don't worry about it."  
  
"Crystal?" Casey wondered aloud.  
  
Leo turned to him and explained, "Some Foot Soldiers stole a crystal from Raph."  
  
"A Foot Soldier? Well, I ran into some of those ninja punks earlier," he said as he began to dig into his pockets. He then pulled something out and continued, "And I beat them up and got this from them." He revealed what he had in his hand.  
  
"The crystal!" Everyone yelled unanimously.  
  
Casey cocked a brow and asked, "Is this important or something?"  
  
Kurai politely took the crystal from Casey and put it in a small black bag that hung loosely from her waist. She then turned her attention back to the human. A bright smile appeared on her face as she thanked him.  
  
"No big," Casey answered humbly.  
  
Everyone made their way back to the decorated Christmas tree and surround it by holding hands. Mikey accidentally bumped his arm on the tree, causing a small bell to ring.  
  
"It's said that everyone time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings," Leo stated matter-of-factly.  
  
Raph looked upward and whispered, "Good job Cyrus and thanks again."  
  
As the group began to sing a Christmas carol, a certain angel from heaven smiled and winked to the turtle. "Anytime Raph. Anytime."  
  
THE END  
  
[whew! Took me a while to get that one out, but I've been having problems with my computer and AOL -growls viciously at stupid AOL- anyways! Hope you enjoyed this fic and expect to see another one coming out soon!] 


End file.
